When it comes to looking through your camera’s viewfinder, which eye do you use?

I find that most of my photographer friends use their right eye, while I use my left. The reason is that our natural tendency is to use our dominant eye in activities that require one eye. Since I have cross dominant vision (I am right handed, yet have a dominant left eye), I use my left eye when photographing (you can read more about Ocular Dominance here).

Does this have any affect on our photography? Nope. The only difference I find is that my nose leaves more smudges on the LCD when using the left eye.

16 Comments

I thought I was just weird; now I find out my right handed, left eye dominance is common enough to have a name. For photography, I find I use my left eye the majority of the time. When I do, I don’t close my right eye and am aware of the surrounding area. The times I do use my right, I close my left eye and am focused only on the viewfinder. Fascinating how the brain works.

Also cross dominant using the left eye in the viewfinder though I am right handed. This may come from firearms training years ago though as it was drilled through our heads to make a cheekweld, place our noses precisely in a particular place and sight through the left eye. So, just about every optic (camera, spotting scope, rifle scope, microscope) I find myself looking through tends to be with the left eye.

I feel like I am joining a support group. I am not cross dominant as I always used my right eye growing up for scopes, etc. With some age though my right eye is going bad in distance vision, so I switched to using my left eye for the viewfinder. Like you say, just a few more nose smudges to deal with.

Oddly enough I’m left eye dominant as well as being right handed. Ironically for the longest time I would do things right handed and then try it left handed later on when I was older and found that switching something from right to left handed wasn’t as much of a stretch as I first thought it would be. I’ve heard that being ‘cross dominant’ has something to do with the way a persons brain is wired between the two hemispheres of the brain, one hemisphere deals with the more logical and and repetitive type of things and the other being more about the creative side. Being cross dominant (if I remember correctly) allows for a better flow of information between the two sides of the brain which in turn increases a persons ability to multi-task and deal with both logical (the mechanical operation of a camera and interactions with people) and the creative (the composition and perspectives of the picture) simultaneously. I don’t remember if cross dominance is a product of the way the brain is wired or if your brain matures differently as a result of being cross dominant.

I’ve heard that being ‘cross dominant’ has something to do with the way a persons brain is wired between the two hemispheres of the brain, one hemisphere deals with the more logical and and repetitive type of things and the other being more about the creative side.

Reminds me of an online test I once took which supposedly indicated the relative strength of right-brain vs left-brain. At the end it had an animated graph which started at the center and moved left or right depending on the results. I remember thinking the graph was broken since it didn’t move; that was until I looked at the tabulated numbers and realized they indicated equal strength. Some say this is a real strength, being able to switch modes of thought with great fluidity. Others say it is a real hindrance, never being able to make up your mind. All I know for sure is it can drive my wife nuts, not being able to get a clear yes/no answer out of me sometimes.

I’m weirder still — I consider myself right-hand dominant (all sports, etc.), though I write and eat left-handed. I had to actually hold my camera to my face to determine that I use my right eye through the viewfinder. What does it all mean? :-)

re: dancer.gif — counter-clock — I’m trying to force myself to see it clockwise and can’t.

Me too! Thought I was odd, but I guess not… Right handed. Left eyed. Eat often with the left hand. Now digital, but always had a problem with old Nikon f series cameras that had to have the film advance partially pulled back to turn the camera on… Poked me in the right eye. Now I just deal with the smudged Lcd display. Still though, It’s difficult to use the thumb control on my D200 while I’m looking through the view finder.

I use my left eye, and am left handed, and also get those smudges ont eh LCD:) I’ve tried shooting with my right eye one time because I was holding the camera differently and just put the eye that was closest to the viewfinder, and I couldn’t do it! That was when I realized I shot with my left eye!Strange…

I am left eye dominant and right handed as well. no big explaination, it’s very simple. I have a stigmatism in my right eye. therefore its weaker. I had to learn to shoot left as well at the range in the Army. I suggest that if you are left eye dominant and it bothers you, just get your eyes checked and maybe a new pair of glasses. That’s what eye did. ;)